Return
by DobbyRocksSocks
Summary: A surprise visitor at the 1-6 sets a series of events into motion. Will Olivia be able to deal with having Elliot back on the squad?


**Disclaimer - I own nothing you recognise, though I am open to a lease agreement for Elliot and Olivia :) **

**AN - While I've been a fan of SVU for years (Or at least until Season 13 when I stopped watching), I've never written for it before so be gentle with me. Reviews are love :P **

**Return**

Olivia closed the file on her desk and stood to take it into Cragen's office. She was already looking forward to the bubble bath, glass of wine, and bad movie she had planned for the evening. The case they'd just finished up on had been a horrible one, one that had made her question her presence in the unit.

It wasn't often that anything could question her love of her job. Very occasionally, there would be a case so horrific, that made her feel like she would do better in computer crimes, or narcotics, or anything that wasn't the Special Victims Unit.

Fin took the file from her hand as he passed her on his way to drop his own file.

"Go and get your coat, baby girl, I'll drive you home," he told her, smiling at her. She returned the smile and nodded her head tiredly.

"Thanks, Fin," she replied quietly.

Shrugging her coat on, she picked up her handbag and moved towards the corridor to wait for him. Waiting for her was a woman she thought, sometimes hoped, she'd never see again.

"Kathy?" she asked, frowning. "What are you doing here?"

"Olivia," Kathy breathed, and Liv was surprised to see a small smile on her face. "I was hoping you'd still be here. Do you, I mean, have you got time to come and get a coffee with me?"

"I...Ah, I'm not sure, I was… I mean, we just finished a bad case, I was just going home," Olivia replied. She wasn't sure what the woman could possibly have to say to her, but she was sure she didn't want to hear it, whatever it was.

"Please?" Kathy said, and Olivia softened. "It won't take long, I promise."

"You ready, baby girl?" Fin asked, rounding the corner and stopping in his tracks when he saw Kathy.

"I'll see you in the morning, alright?" Olivia said, turning to meet Fin's eyes.

"You're sure?" Fin asked, raising his eyebrow slightly. "I don't mind waiting for you."

"Go on home, Fin. I'll catch a cab," Olivia assured him, smiling slightly.

He nodded, and patted her arm gently as he passed, looking curiously at Kathy.

Olivia gestured for Kathy to proceed her down the corridor. "Let's go and get that coffee."

xxxx

Olivia sat at the table in the small cafe waiting for Kathy to return to the table. She wouldn't admit it to anyone, probably not even herself if she wasn't feeling so unsettled, but Kathy's appearance at the precinct had really thrown her for a loop.

She tried not to think about Elliot, or anything associated with him, as much as humanly possible. It hurt too much. She'd thought they were close, thought they were best friends. It had been made absolutely clear that he'd felt nothing close to affection for her though, when he'd left without a word a little over six months earlier.

"Thanks for agreeing to talk to me," Kathy said, as she sat down, startling Olivia from her thoughts.

"It's fine. How are the kids?" Olivia asked, wrapping a hand around the coffee Kathy had put on the table in front of her.

"They're great, thanks," Kathy replied with a smile. "They miss Elliot of course, but they still see him on the weekends."

Olivia blinked. "What?"

"I knew he hadn't been to see you. We got divorced, three months ago, Olivia."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Olivia replied, frown back in place. "But I'm not really sure what that has to do with me, Kathy. I haven't seen Elliot in months."

Kathy smiled sadly. "I still love him, and I believe he still loves me, but we're not in love. I don't know if we ever were. One reason I wanted to see you was to apologise. I was never really fair to you. I was jealous of you. Jealous that you saw my husband at least twice as much as I did. Jealous of how much better you seemed to understand him."

"Kathy… I don't know what you want me to say. I'm sorry you felt like that, I hope you know there was never anything… Nothing ever happened. Between me and Elliot I mean. Nothing."

"I know," Kathy replied with a nod. "But I did expect him to come running to you as soon as the divorce was finalised."

"Like I said, I haven't seen him since before he left the unit," Olivia said. Her irritation levels were rising despite her, more than likely a product of the stressful days that had preceded this unexpected meeting.

"I asked him about you last week when he dropped the kids off. He told me he misses you, but he's terrified that you hate him," Kathy said, and Olivia was surprised that the woman was still smiling.

"I don't mean to be rude, Kathy," Olivia started, pausing for a moment to drain her coffee. "If Elliot missed me as much as you seem to think he does, he knows where I live, and he knows where I work. If he sent you as a messenger, he's not the man I thought he was."

"He didn't send me. He loves you, Olivia, and while yes, that pissed me off for a long time, I've come to accept it, and even encourage it. He's struggling without you, even if he won't admit it, and I know he misses his job. If he knew you weren't angry with him, I think he'd come back to the unit."

Olivia snorted. "I am angry with him. In fact, I'm fucking furious with him, but that wouldn't stop him coming back to the unit if he really wanted to. I still don't know why I'm here, Kathy."

"I just… He misses you, and he loves you. I thought you should know," Kathy told her quietly. "I'm sorry for stopping by, it was a stupid idea."

Olivia sighed. "It wasn't. Or at least, not entirely. I'm glad he still has you in his life, even if it's not as his wife. He deserves a good friend. I'm sorry I can't tell you what you want to hear."

Kathy stood as Olivia did and they walked out of the cafe together. Before Olivia could flag a cab down, Kathy put her hand on Liv's shoulder.

"One last question, and I'll leave you alone?"

Olivia smiled. "Go ahead."

"If he comes back to the unit, will you leave?"

Olivia shook her head. "No. The unit is… No. I wouldn't leave, even if he came back. And yes, I suppose you can quote me on that."

Olivia climbed into the cab and offered Kathy a smile before the taxi pulled away.

xxxx

"Olivia? A word?" Cragen shouted from his office.

Olivia sighed and threw her pen down on top of the file she was working on. Fin offered her a sympathetic smile. They all knew she'd been off her game since Kathy's visit, and she'd been expecting Don to call her into his office for a stern word for at least four days.

"Close the door, Liv," he said when she entered. She did as he said, taking a seat in front of him.

"I hear you had a visitor last week?" Don asked, and Olivia sighed.

"I know I've not been at my best, Cap, I'll sort it out."

"I didn't say anything, did I?" He reprimanded gently. "I'm worried about you. Maybe you should take a few days off?"

Olivia shook her head. "That'd only give me more time to think about things best forgotten," she admitted.

"He's coming back, Liv," he said after a moment, watching her carefully for a reaction.

Olivia sighed and leant back in her chair. "When?"

"Next week if he passes the psych eval with Huang," Cragen told her.

"Will I have to partner him?" she asked quietly.

"I won't pretend that I don't want my best team back together, but I won't force you either, Liv," he assured her. "You're not going to be asking me for a transfer are you?"

She shook her head. "No. I might be angry with him, Cap, but I won't be forced out of my home."

He nodded. "That's good enough for me. Get yourself home, start fresh in the morning."

xxxx

Olivia walked into the bullpen on edge, hoping she would be the first one there. She didn't like the idea of walking in to find him waiting on her, watching her. She felt like it would put her at a disadvantage.

Of course, she was already at a disadvantage, because she knew she was the only one of the two of them that actually cared what the other thought.

Fin was waiting for her, a vending cart coffee in his already outstretched hand. She smiled at him.

"I knew there was a reason I liked you," she told him as she took the drink and put it on her desk, shrugging her jacket off.

He laughed. "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that's the reason," he teased, and she chuckled at him.

"We got anything yet?" she asked, sitting on her desk.

"You do know that you've got a chair, like, right there, don't you?" he asked, smirking.

"I do know that, and you didn't answer the question."

"Smartass," Fin muttered. "Not yet. Still, it's early," he replied, pulling out a few files. "Until then, I gots me some paperwork to do."

She nodded and sat down in her chair, pulling her own files from the drawer. She sunk herself into the paperwork, allowing it to soothe her nerves.

She felt him enter before she saw him. As soon as he stepped into the bullpen, she knew he was there. She didn't look up, the only outward suggestion that she had even noticed him was the tightening of her hand on the pen she was writing with.

She chanced a glance when she heard Don's office door close, and sure enough, she could see him through the blinds, talking to the captain as though nothing had happened.

"Are you alright?" Fin asked quietly, his tone making Munch look up from his own paperwork to

glance at her concern in his eyes.

She nodded her head, not trusting herself to speak and returned her attention to the paperwork on her desk. Twenty minutes later, the door opened again, and he moved to the desk facing hers, the desk he had sat at as her partner for twelve years.

"Hey, Liv," he said softly.

She looked up to meet his gaze. Damn him, but his eyes were as perfect as they'd always been, that stupid half smile that she loved adorned his mouth. She'd never seen a better sight, and she hated him for that.

"Stabler," she greeted flatly. "Welcome back."

"I deserved that," he admitted, raising a hand to the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, Liv."

She stared at him for a moment, before she swivelled her chair. "Fin, you got the case file for the Ella Melendal case? I need to check something."

"Sure thing, baby girl, here," he said, pushing his chair across the floor to hand her the file. He looked up at Elliot.

"Stabler," he greeted, his voice a touch warmer than Olivia's, but not exactly friendly.

"Fin," Elliot returned, nodding his head. "Munch," he added, glancing over at the oldest member of the squad. He sat down when Munch just returned the nod, and started arranging his desk to his liking.

"Where are the new detectives?" Elliot asked her after a minute. Liv didn't bother looking up, she just shrugged her shoulders.

"I… Cragen said this desk was still free. I can ask someone to switch with me if it'll make you more comfortable," he said, and she could feel his eyes on her skin. She hated the uncertainty in his voice. It just didn't suit him.

"The desk is yours, Elliot," she replied after a minute, when she knew her tone would be calm. Sliding her chair across the floor, she handed the file back to Fin.

"You know you got legs?" he asked her, pushing the chair.

"Yeah, but I also got a moving chair. Why would I have one of those if I can't use it to come and annoy you?" she replied, grinning at him.

"You could never annoy me," he said, smirking at her.

"You shouldn't have said that," Munch said, without looking up from his file. "You know she's gonna try even harder now."

Olivia laughed as she nodded her head. "See, Munch knows."

Fin swatted at her head with the file she'd just handed him. "Get back to work," he told her, before he laughed at the face she was pulling. "Go, now."

"Yeah, yeah," she muttered, sliding back to her desk.

"Liv, Fin, you've got a vic to go and see at Mercy," Cragen said, walking out of his office. "Rollins and Amaro are already at the crime scene."

Olivia nodded, standing up and putting her jacket on. She didn't look at Elliot as she walked from the bullpen, keeping her back straight as she walked side by side with Fin. It was only when the elevator doors closed that she slumped against the cold metal.

"You alright, baby girl?" Fin asked, wrapping a comforting arm around her shoulders.

She nodded. "I just wasn't expecting… I don't know what I was expecting."

"Can you work with him?" Fin asked softly. Olivia hesitated for a minute, before she nodded again.

"I'll have too."

She straightened up and Fin moved his arm. Sliding her glasses over her face, she let go of the emotions she was drowning in about Elliot's return and turned her mind to her job.

xxxx

Olivia rested her head on her hands. It was getting close to midnight, but she was in no rush to go home. The day had gone from bad to worse. The victim had been a nine year old girl who was so traumatised by her attack that the doctors had had to sedate her.

Olivia rubbed her eyes. She was so tired, but somehow, the thought of her empty apartment tonight was unappealing.

"Why are you still here?"

The voice shocked her, and her head shot up. Elliot was stood looking at her with his head tilted to the side slightly.

"I didn't know anyone was still here," she admitted, lowering her head once more.

"Liv, can we talk?" he asked, sitting down on the edge of her desk.

"I'd really rather we didn't," she replied tiredly. "I think it's time I left."

"Let me drive you home."

"I'll take a cab."

"Olivia, will you listen to me, please?" he asked, and the desperation in his voice hit her in the chest like a jack-hammer.

She looked up to meet his gaze. "There's nothing to say."

"Liv, I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I'm sorry for leaving without speaking to you, I'm sorry for ignoring you, I'm sorry I didn't get in contact with you, and I'm sorry, Liv, so sorry, for leaving you. You have to believe that."

She shook her head. "I'm not listening to this," she muttered. "Look, you say you're sorry, fine. I believe you're sorry. We have to work together. You're a good cop, Elliot, and I have no issue with that, but don't ask me to trust you. Don't ask me to forgive you, and don't expect me to act as though nothing has changed. You're my colleague. End of."

She stood up and shook her jacket on. "Good night, Elliot."

"You can't keep running away from me, Liv," he said to her back as she walked away. She didn't turn around, but she did stop.

"Sure I can. We're both good at running away, El."

xxxx

"I don't know what to do, Cap. She's always so… so distant," Elliot said, with a sigh.

"Give her time. She has a right to feel hurt, Elliot," Cragen said.

"I know that, but she won't let me talk to her. If she won't let me explain, how can I make it right?"

"I saw you talking to her today," Don said, frowning.

"About the case," Eliott clarified. "She'll only ever talk to me about work."

Cragen rubbed a hand across his face. "I still think you need to give her time. If you think it'll help, I'll pair you with her a little more than I have been doing. Let me get this straight, though, Elliot. If it starts interfering with your work, I'll partner you separately."

"Thanks, Don. I can't believe how badly I screwed up."

"Everyone is allowed a mistake," Don said as Elliot stood up. "Things will get better. Give it, and her, time to heal."

xxxx

Three weeks had passed since Elliot had returned to the unit, and slowly, Olivia was getting used to his familiar presence again. Three times, the day before, she'd had to stop herself teasing him, from laughing with him, from sharing an inside joke.

She told herself it would be easier in the long run if she didn't let herself enjoy him being there. If she kept her distance, she wouldn't be hurt when he left. Again.

Sighing, she stopped at the coffee vendor. She didn't realise until she was passed two cups instead of one, that she'd ordered his usual along with her own.

She shook her head at herself and contemplated dumping his coffee in the bin. Deciding against it, she walked into the precinct. He was already there, his head down, concentrating on paperwork.

She put the cup on his desk before sitting down at her own. She watched out of the corner of her eye as he looked first at the coffee, then at her.

"Thanks," he said quietly. She looked at him then.

"You're welcome," she replied quietly, offering him a tentative smile. Shrugging her jacket off, she pulled out the files that she had to work on and got on with her work. She could feel his gaze on her for a few minutes before he too turned back to his work.

xxxx

Olivia growled in frustration. She was sitting on her desk, Fin, Elliot and Munch all sitting in chairs around her, and Captain Cragen was stood beside her, rubbing his hand over his eyes.

"Six times," she muttered. "How the hell have we missed him six times?"

"Bad luck?" Fin said, shrugging his shoulders slightly. "We'll get him, baby girl."

"Before or after he rapes and kills another woman?" she snarled.

"Coffee anyone?" Amaro asked, as he walked into the bullpen with Amanda.

"Mmh, I love you," Olivia said, taking the coffee Nick was holding out for her.

Fin chuckled as he took his own from Amanda. "Why don't I get that reaction from you when I fetch you coffee?"

"Because you fetch me coffee in the mornings, when I'm still feeling relatively human," she replied, inhaling the scent from her cup.

"Alright, hows this? Fin, Munch, you go and speak to the guys mother again, see if she can add anything we don't know about him. Rollins, Amaro, go and check the list of places he's known to frequent, and Stabler, Liv, go sit in a car and watch his apartment. He has to return there some time."

Olivia groaned. She glanced at Elliot. "Why do we always get the stakeouts?" she complained.

"It's because we're his favourites," Elliot replied in a mock whisper.

Amanda laughed at the two of them as Olivia stood up. Elliot grabbed his jacket and gestured for her to proceed him.

"We need more coffee," Olivia muttered, before she walked from the bullpen.

"Is that a good idea, Cap?" Nick asked, glancing at the retreating backs of Olivia and Elliot.

"They're doing their job, Amaro, perhaps you could get on with yours, huh?" Don replied, before returning to his office.

xxxx

They'd been sitting in the car for four hours. Four long hours and she was uncomfortable. She shifted slightly, keeping her eyes on the building where the suspect lived.

"Kathy told me she came to see you," Elliot said quietly. "I'm sorry about that."

"You really didn't know she was coming?" Olivia scoffed.

"I really didn't."

"I hope you weren't too harsh with her. She was trying to help you, I think."

"I know, and no, I wasn't. I just wish she hadn't made you feel uncomfortable," Elliot replied.

"Don't worry about it," Olivia muttered. "Is that him?" she asked, watching a man walk down the street towards them.

Elliot glanced at the file, then at the suspect and grinned. "We've got him."

xxxx

"Who's up for a drink?" Fin asked, standing up and stretching. Olivia nodded immediately as she closed the file she was writing and shoved it in her desk.

"I'm already there," she muttered, pulling her jacket on. The others all answered with varying offers of agreement.

"I don't want anyone in before nine in the morning," Cragen called from his office. "You all deserve a night off."

"Who's on call then?" Nick asked, frowning.

"Since you asked, you are," Cragen said, smirking at the now groaning rookie detective.

Olivia laughed. "Burn," she chuckled, allowing Fin to wrap an arm around her shoulders as they led the six detectives from the bullpen.

"For that, I'll be calling you if the Cap calls me," Nick said, falling into step just behind her.

"Try it, Amaro and you'll be Homicides next victim," she warned, turning to stick her tongue out at him.

Amanda laughed, then stopped abruptly. "If you're on call, I'm on call," she said, frowning at Nick.

"That's what you get for having a partner who can't keep his mouth shut," Olivia told her in a mock whisper, grinning at the affronted look on Elliot's face.

"Charming," he muttered, making her grin even wider.

"Come on, El, how many times did we get stuck on call because you pissed Cragen off?" she asked.

He shrugged, conceding the point. It felt so good that she was talking to him normally that he didn't want to say anything that would make her angry with him.

They reached the bar within minutes, and shortly after that, sat in a booth, a drink a piece in hand.

"I think you've got an admirer, Liv," Amanda said while the guys talked sport.

Olivia frowned. "Who?" she asked.

"Guy in the suit at the bar," Amanda said quietly. "He hasn't took his eyes off you since you walked in the door."

"Maybe he's looking at you," Olivia said, feeling slightly uncomfortable. She chanced a glance at the bar, meeting the mans eyes. He raised his glass to her slightly, smiling at her. She looked away quickly.

Not that she wasn't flattered, the guy was handsome, but she just wasn't… she wasn't interested. She rolled her eyes at the smirk Amanda was sending her way, and butted into the guys conversation instead.

xxxx

"My round?" Munch asked, a few hours later.

"Not for me," Olivia said, holding her hand up. She drained her drink and twisted in her seat to grab her jacket. "I'm going home."

"No, Liv, it's still early," Fin whined.

She wrinkled her nose at him. "I've had about three hours sleep in the last sixty hours, Fin, I need to sleep."

He sighed and nodded. "You want me to take you home?" he asked, but she shook her head.

"I'm good, I'll get a cab," she replied, smiling. "I'll see you all in the morning."

She waved at them as she left the table, pulling her jacket on. There were usually cabs parked just around the corner, and she hoped there would be one there. It was a chilly evening and she didn't much fancy standing out in the cold to wait for one.

"Liv!"

She groaned internally, but stopped to wait. She'd known the peace between her and Elliot was too good to last.

"What's up?" she asked when he reached her.

"Mind if I share your cab?" he asked, and she sighed.

"I can get myself home, El, I'm not helpless," she told him, before she started walking again. He fell into step beside her.

"I don't live far from you, now," he told her. "And I'm exhausted. Seems pointless to get separate cabs."

She sighed again, this time in defeat, and nodded her head. "Alright then."

Luckily for her, there was a cab sitting at the curb waiting. She climbed in, giving the driver her address, and when Elliot climbed in beside her, the cab pulled away.

"I had fun tonight," he said quietly after a minute. She nodded in agreement.

"Me too," she admitted.

"Are you, I mean, will you…"

"Spit it out, El, before you choke on it," she said, turning to look at him.

"Are you ready to hear me out, yet?" he asked.

"Why won't you leave it alone?" she asked tiredly.

"Because I miss you."

"You've been glued to my side for sixty hours," she exclaimed, shaking her head.

"You know what I mean, Liv, please."

"Fine. But you're getting the Chinese if you expect me to postpone going to bed," she warned him. He smiled at her, and she couldn't stop herself from returning it. He leant forward to speak to the driver, asking him to drop them a block from Olivia's apartment building instead so he could grab the food.

xxxx

Olivia busied herself getting plates and cutlery, trying to calm herself down. Elliot was in her living room, gearing himself up to talk about why he left, and she didn't know what she wanted to do more, listen to him, or kick him out on his ass before he could start.

The truth was, she didn't want to know why he left. She didn't want to listen to his reasons why she wasn't important enough to warrant a simple goodbye.

Deciding she needed more fortification than she'd already had at the bar, she grabbed two bottles of beer from the fridge, before taking the plates into the living room, putting them on the table. He started dishing up, and the scene was so familiar to her, it made her heart ache. She left the living room again, this time moving to her bedroom where she shed her work clothes and settled into sweat pants and a tank top, throwing Elliot's old NYPD hoodie over the top.

She didn't care what he said, it was her comfort, and he wasn't getting it back. Not that she thought he'd ask for it.

"That looks better on you than it ever did on me," he said when she returned to the living room, settling herself on the couch, her back to the arm, her legs crossed in front of her.

She smiled slightly, thanking him quietly when he passed her her plate.

They ate in silence, a comfortable silence they hadn't enjoyed for a while, even before he'd left the unit. The light from the tv flickered over their faces, making the room seem strangely intimate to her. She barely managed to stop herself getting up to put every light she had on to stop the feeling.

He finished eating before her, placing his empty plate back on the table. He still didn't speak, and she wondered if he was scared of breaking the comfortableness they had found between them. He picked up the beer bottle instead, rolling it between both hands.

It didn't take long for her to finish eating, and she followed suit, picking up her own beer.

"You wanted to talk. So, talk," she prompted him after a minute.

He looked up to meet her eyes and took a deep breath. "I fell apart. After the shooting, I mean," he said, and she nodded. She'd known that much, she'd seen his face just after.

"When I went home that night, Kathy… She asked me what happened. I couldn't tell her, not then at least, and I think I scared her. How was I supposed to tell her, tell anyone, that I had killed, murdered, a child."

Olivia shook her head. She'd told herself that she wouldn't interrupt him, but she couldn't stop herself. "It was a justified shooting, El, it wasn't murder. You did what you had to do to save a squad room full of people."

He nodded, offering her a small smile. "I know, at least, I do now. I gotta tell you though, Liv, I wasn't thinking about the squad room of people when I shot her. I only thought about you."

He paused to take a sip of his drink. "I drank myself into a stupor that night. Then, when I woke up the day after, I did the same thing again. And again. And again. I couldn't face what I did, so I did everything I could to forget it.

Kathy took the kids to her mothers so they wouldn't see me in such a state. I put in my resignation, and she shouted at me for it. I was a mess, Liv. She helped me though, even while she was telling me it was time for us to admit that we were married only in name, she helped me get the help I needed.

She tried to convince me to come and see you. She'd dial your number and hand me the phone two, three times a day, but I couldn't. I'd let her down, I'd let my kids down, but I couldn't let you down."

He stopped again, and she watched him as he fought to keep his emotions under control. It was heartbreaking for her to watch him like that. She reached out a hand and he grasped it in his own, holding it as though she was made of glass.

"When I was finally strong enough to face what I'd done, it had already been months since I'd contacted you. I knew that I must have hurt you. I didn't have the guts to face you. You have to understand me though, Liv, even when I was drinking so heavily I'm surprised I didn't have to get my stomach pumped, you were always on my mind. I didn't stop thinking about you, not one day while I was away.

I knew you would be angry with me, and I knew you'd probably shout at me, or hit me, or… I don't know. I couldn't handle the chance that I would show up and find that you didn't care. I couldn't stand the thought that if you would just greet me as you would anyone, as though it hadn't mattered that I'd not been in your life for months. I didn't want to know if you'd moved on."

He hung his head in shame. "I'm sorry, Liv."

She felt the tears in her eyes spill over onto her cheek. He was still holding his hand in hers, and she pulled it away gently. He looked up at her then, and she could see the fear of rejection in his eyes, eyes that were overly bright as he held back tears of his own.

She held her arms out to him in a silent invite, and he fell into her embrace, wrapping his arms around her tightly. He murmured a stream of apologies into her shoulder as she held him, and she shushed him gently as he sobbed, raising a hand to stroke his head.

She lost track of time as she held him. It could have been seconds, minutes, or hours. She didn't care. There was something so right in the feeling of having him there that she didn't try and pull away, didn't push him from her.

He pulled back when he'd got himself under control, but only enough to look at her. He kept his arms around her loosely. She met his eyes with her own.

"I missed you," she whispered. "So much, I missed you. I'm not sure how you could have thought that I would ever be indifferent to your absence though, El. Twelve years. You're still the longest relationship I've ever had with a man."

He smiled at her. "I missed you. More than I can put into words."

She nodded, then glanced at the clock. "Movie?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

"You're tired," he said, shaking his head.

"And I'm not ready for you to leave yet," she countered. "Movie?"

"Sure, Liv," he replied, his eyes softening at her admission. He leant over and kissed her forehead before he stood up. "Action or Comedy?"

She shrugged. "I'm not bothered. Whatever you want to watch."

He grabbed a random DVD from the stack and put it on, before he sat back down beside her. She was watching him was a small smile on her face, and he raised an eyebrow in question.

She shook her head. He put his arm on the back of the couch and she stared at it for a moment before shuffling around so she was sitting next to him. He wrapped the outstretched arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his chest.

"Can I take you to dinner tomorrow?" he asked her, and she stretched her neck to look up at him.

"I forgive you, El," she said softly. "You don't have to try and make it up to me."

"I'm not trying to make it up to you," he said, putting his free hand on her cheek. Slowly, giving her time to pull away, he brushed her lips with his own gently. "I'm asking you on a date."


End file.
